Recently a gifted medium friend of mine gave me an unsolicited message: “Follow Saturn.” At first I thought this odd, as this friend’s knowledge regarding astrology is modest. However the more I thought about it, I recalled my ‘transit’ chart reading with Steven Forrest last spring which focused heavily on Saturn transiting the 12th house of my natal chart.

For those unfamiliar with ‘astrospeak’, a brief side bar on what ‘transit’ means. Each of the planets in our solar system has an orbit that rotates them through the twelve signs of the zodiac; some planets for example like speedy Mercury and Venus move quite quickly. The ‘outer planets’ i.e., those furthest from the Sun take a very long time to lumber their way around the heavens. For example, Saturn takes approximately 28 years,(give or take), Uranus takes 83.75 years, Pluto takes 248.6 years and etheric Neptune takes 163.72 years.

From an evolutionary perspective, there are no accidents in a chart. Everyone’s chart is uniquely orchestrated for optimum Soul growth opportunities. When a planet’s orbit pings a sensitive point in our natal chart, such as the birth position of the Sun, Moon, Ascendant (i.e., the sign on the horizon the moment of your birth), as well as other important points including houses(the circumstances of life), this is called a ‘transit’. Transits can be very important because the psychological energies they carry come with updates, so to speak, in a personal agenda for us. Whether or not we take advantage of these perfectly ‘timed’ events is another matter; we can respond positively or negatively, the choice is ours.

The ancients viewed Saturn (that old devil) as a malefic, along with Mars and Pluto. Depending on their placements in a birth chart or by transit, it was believed that these guys portended inauspicious outcomes. Even today traditional astrologers may view a client’s chart with a wary eye when Saturn is ‘acting up.’ However, no doubt about it, Saturn’s job is to teach us lessons we need for growth and yet provide a sturdy foundation under our feet. Thus, if we opt for the evolutionary lens, we’re better tuned in if we view Saturn’s transit with a higher perspective.

Nevertheless, our experience of Saturn can be a lonely road to travel; often we’re ready to quit, throw in the towel and second-guess our judgement. These possibilities are particularly highlighted when Saturn by transit is in the sign of Scorpio as it is currently. Here, Saturn will remain until until this time next year when it shifts into Sagittarius for a time before backing up for a last past through Scorpio and then moves on for good in September 2015. So, we have our work cut out for us, each and every one. When Saturn’s in the sign of the Scorpion, we’re challenged to look at things within our psyche and past experiences we’d rather not. While in the end such excavations make us stronger, help us to grow by understanding how we could have behaved or done things differently, it’s not alwaysa particularly good time making us want to run the other way.

Dr. Bach’s Gentian is the perfect flower remedy for times when Saturn is wreaking havoc. As one of Bach’s original ‘Twelve Healers’, the negative Gentian mood state is all about discouragement, self-doubt and perseverance. According to Dr. Bach the purpose of the Gentianremedy is to lead us to an: “ understanding that there is no failure when you are doing your utmost, whatever the apparent result.”This understanding helps us realize that steady perseverance is essential to overcoming self-doubt. A vital key to our own Soul evolution is to remember that cosmic law dictates trusting the perfect timing of the universe; that the universe provides us with whatever we need for our expansion and growth. When we find change and challenge difficult, Gentian helps us to understand the value of, and engage in, perseverance in the face of adversity and disappointment.

Tomorrow, November 1st, we’ll experience the 4th ‘exact hit’ of the energetic Pluto/Uranus square-dance which began back in June 2012. The final ‘hit’ will happen on December 15th, 2014, but between then and now, we’ll continue to feel the intensity of these two planets as they tease each other with the energetic tension created between the waxing and waning of their orbits. As I’ve said in previous posts about the energy of this configuration from an evolutionary perspective, there’s an urgent message for each of us that the Universe is trying to deliver.

Back in 2012 I welcomed the following guest post from Simon Bentley, Principal of the White Eagle School of Astrology, based in the UK. As we are currently being inundated with the recent lunar eclipse in Aries, Mercury’s retrograde and extended stay in Scorpio, the forthcoming Solar Eclipse on November 3rd in Scorpio on top of this exact hit tomorrow, it seems more than appropriate to revisit Simon’s ‘take’ as to WHY the Universe is trying to get us on the line! As Simon points out, the energetic and metaphorical signatures of Pluto and Uranus are about transformation. Pluto brings to light those things which have been hidden in the dark that we need to bring to light and face while Uranus shatters that which is past its ‘sell by’ date and pushes for thinking, doing out of the box…new chapters and directions on our evolutionary path soulfully and collectively are waiting for us to go through the doorway. As you’ll read through Simon’s words, evolutionary astrology is a powerful tool to help us along on this journey.

‘Life, the Transformer’

I wonder if we have ever stopped to think what the word [transform] actually means? Literally, the prefix ‘trans’ means ‘across’, so that ‘transformation’ comes to mean ‘moving across to another form’, and so, changing form. If we aren’t careful, we use this word very glibly, but looked at from a spiritual perspective it is a word of crucial importance, since we are constantly attempting to transform ourselves, change into a form suited to our current position on the spiritual path.

Eventually, we shall all learn to transform continuously, but until we reach such a point of evolution it tends to happen in fits and starts and is not always welcomed…Astrologers recognize that Pluto, despite the fact that astronomers ‘demoted’ it in recent years, is the planet that symbolizes this factor in our growth, and when it’s particularly strong in a horoscope one can be sure that there are significant transformational processes going on in the life.

At this time, Pluto tends to be manifesting in terms of those occurrences and changes in life that seem completely fated, over which we appear to have no control. The ‘fits and starts’ mentioned above tend to bring to light some kind of major change, the closing of one chapter and the beginning of another, closely linked with Pluto’s action. However, bearing in mind that every life, every incarnation of every soul, is part of the grand transformational process that eventually brings us to divinity, the significance of the word ‘transformation’ means far more in astrology than simply a reference to what Pluto may do. The whole of life is in some way transformational, and so it could be said that astrology is a science that illuminates the transformational process we call ‘life’. Astrologers are often called upon for advice when there are crises in life, turning points – moments of transformation, if you will.

Astrology can help the soul to understand the process and therefore to be less apprehensive about it and to handle it more harmoniously. Most of life’s problems, as well as often being the inevitable outworking of karmic patterns, are brought about by our tendency to resist this process: astrology, by at least attempting to explain it, helps to remove our all too natural tendency to resist. This raises an interesting point, especially for astrologers themselves.

It has always been considered that the planet of our science is Uranus, and I would not dispute that, astrology is a Uranian occupation, revealing, as it does, spiritual truth and the action of the divine will in human life. However, if astrology is also an assistant to transformation, surely it is also Plutonic? Personally I have often suspected as much, and what I have found is that while astrology is undoubtedly Uranian, Pluto is commonly very active in the horoscopes of those who become professional astrologers.

As professionals they are called upon to help others to cooperate actively with the transformational process in their lives. But there are also implications for the astrologers themselves, and the origin of their vocation. They too are undergoing transformations in their own personal lives, and what they see and experience through their clients is part of their process as well.

The use of the wonderful tool we call astrology is always, therefore, a two-way experience; if properly accomplished it’s that classic win-win situation which we all like to achieve! The client is better enabled to cope with his or her transformation; the astrologer is transformed to a degree simply by doing the job and thus learning from the client. So we could say that astrology itself can be – and hopefully is – used to hasten this process and thus speed up evolution, both individually and, through that, of the whole world.

On the heels of the powerful Full Moon in Aries last Friday,little Mercury, ‘messenger of the Gods’, ‘director of all forms of communication’, begins its final retrograde motion of 2013 today as it appears to back up in its orbit until November 10th. On the practical level as always with a Mercury retrograde, it’s wise to make certain that computers are continually backed up, messages are double checked before we hit ‘send’ or ‘delete’, details of appointments are re-checked and that we are conscious of what’s coming out of our mouths. When Mercury turns retrograde, it tends to play havoc with all forms of communication whether they be external or simply a mind that just will not STOP…this is Mercury’s energetic MO.

However, this time there’s a further catch. While speedy Mercury normally moves quickly through a sign, this time it hangs around in what Steven Forrest refers to as ‘Spooky Scorpio’, the sign of those things ‘hidden’, until December 5th. Even after it goes direct in motion, Mercury remains here, giving us more time to feel at the depths of our Soul, where Scorpio demands we come face to face with our truths. At first glance, it would seem that the planet which rules the mind, communication and thinking paired with the sign of depth, feeling and truth, would seem a very odd pairing.

However, when any planet shifts into ‘retrograde’ motion, the message is to contemplate; to better understand the particular part of ourselves represented by the planet’s energy and the messages of the sign its occupying. In this case we’re mentally encouraged to consider different perspectives of the past, perhaps where our mind demanded control, running roughshod over our innate intuition. In the silence of Scorpio’s depth during Mercury’s retrograde and post-retrograde period where it remains for a time in Scorpio, we’re offered the opportunity to step back and shift perceptions, to ‘let go’ of reactions and thought processes that no longer serve or benefit our evolution. Such shifts can lead us then to alternative actions in the future that support our growth and ability to manifest our greatest good.

Thus, during a Mercury Retrograde as I’ve written previously, Dr. Bach’s flower remedy Cerato can be very helpful. Like all of the remedies, Cerato can re-balance temporary or situational mood states but it’s also one of Dr. Bach’s original ‘Twelve Healers’ and therefore a Soul Type. While one may not be a Cerato Soul per se, those who have Mercury significantly placed in their chart are particularly subject to Cerato’s shadow energy which distrusts innate wisdom. As a result, trusting one’s own knowing is very difficult if not impossible.

During Mercury’s retrograde motion where the message for everyone is to quiet the mind and mouth, Bach’s Cerato can act as a catalyst, shifting our perspective from the external to the internal. It can take us down to our depths where Scorpio waits for us to face our truths and acknowledge our feelings. Such excavations are scary territory, but if we call upon Cerato, its gentle energy will support us in our efforts to go forth where we can come to ‘know’ the wisdom that is ours and to trust it.

Sadly five weeks ago I bid farewell to my Cathar adventure in France’s Languedoc/L’Occitaine region, returning back to Oxford for another week before flying home to Chicago. My visits to the UK are always crammed full of seeing friends, extended family and business contacts; no time to reflect. But now back in Chicago, settling into my daily routine I’ve had time to play back in my mind what I took away from this experience and leaps of faith. Surely part of my experience was to absorb factual information that will provide background for my next historical fiction book, Flight of Doves? Equally important, I’ve wondered, did I clear the unfinished karmic business of my 13th century life by returning to the ‘scene of the crime’, so to speak? Those of you who have read my postings on Karmic Astrology won’t find this last bit surprising, yet this is what has surprised me; aside from grasping the academic immersion, I have yet to effectively language the deeper resonances of this experience which brings me to recognizing a greater, perhaps more important lesson which is this…

In our journey of our evolution, the assimilation, the download/upload of information from our Soul is not always identified much less realized as meaningful in a timely fashion. And yet, this process can profoundly affect us in ways to be determined, requiring faith in some measure. Surprising events, chance meetings, omens if you will, are there in front of us, waiting for us to consciously plug into rather than dismissed. As a mundane example, it now seems that I’ve been offered three ‘interesting’ nudges regarding my curiosity in the Cathars that may or may not be significant. And, I’ve decided to pay attention as they’re so ‘odd’, filing them away in the back of my mind for future possible recall–they may mean something down the road…or not, who knows-they may have absolutely nothing to do with my writing but something else entirely, yet to be revealed. Nevertheless …

Two and a half years ago when I was finishing the final version of Murder of Crows, I knew I wanted to write my next book set against the Cathar story. At that time, other than my inexplicable draw to their history and persecution by Rome for their beliefs, I knew very few detailed specifics. However, I needed a working title for the book. In keeping with the concept of my series, Flight through Time, ‘something’ compelled me to choose, ‘Flight of Doves’ for this new project; I haven’t the remotest idea of what drew me to it. It wasn’t until shortly before my departure for France that I came across an academic notation that the Cathars were often identified by the ‘symbol’ of the Dove!

As I was reading various resources in preparation for my trip, I kept thinking that the simple robes or habits worn by the Perfects (Parfaits) were a dark blue, despite the fact that some academic authorities insisted they wore black. This small fact kept niggling in the back of my brain…one of those things that keeps saying, “no that isn’t right, they wore blue.” And, indeed they did as I was to discover upon further research. It wasn’t a case of that they didn’t wear black, but more to the point, they were known to also wear habits of dark blue.

And the stunner…while I was in the L’Occitaine, I received an email one evening from a woman I’d never met, explaining that she accidentally had come across my website and blog posts about my forthcoming trip to Cathar country. She went onto explain that she was actually from Mazamet, a town roughly 60 miles north of where I was staying that evening. She detailed her deep interest in the Cathars, her current work in alternative therapies and asked if I taught classes on my work with Edward Bach’s flower remedies. She also mentioned her study in astrology with particular interest in Karmic Astrology and her possession of all of the books written by my teacher and mentor, Steven Forrest. But it wasn’t until I read further on that I was truly astonished! She expressed an interest in meeting me as she lives about 45 minutes from my home in the Chicago area! How can this crossing of paths possibly be explained as a chance ‘coincidence’? Perhaps, but I choose to believe it isn’t.

These points bring me back to the issue of being awake to messages from our Soul which often function as safety nets when we risk taking leaps of faith. As essence of Spirit, we incarnate into the body so that our Soul has the opportunity to evolve and grow through lessons that can only be learned through the physical world, some very hard karmic experiences. In such times I often recall the scene where Harrison Ford as Indian Jones is teetering on the edge of a dizzying precipice, a death gorge beckons below. His pursuers are closing in fast, his choices are two: succumb to capture or risk safety by taking a ‘leap of faith’ across the abyss, knowing that if he misses, death is certain. Just as he steps into the void an image of a lifesaving bridge suddenly appears; clearly a metaphor for taking a leap of faith–the very foundation of the Cathar’s philosophy–that ‘faith’ in the unseen, the non-physical, is greater than we can possibly imagine.

The Dove is a work of art created in 1982 by Jean-Luc Séverac, a Minerve artist, to commemorate the 140 Cathar Parfaits (Perfects) who were burned at the stake in 1210.

The stele is placed in front of the door to Eglise Saint Etienne in a small square off the rue des Remparts. In describing his concept, artist Jean-Luc Séverac wrote, “The Cathars raised themselves above the material world…..so I made the dove, not out of stone, but out of light – the absence of matter is the only way to represent the Cathars.” (kindly contributed by Vernonique Frede-Markscheid)

A deviation from my usual blog topics, I happened to come across the following posting from Huffington about Bronnie Ware, an Australian palliative nurse who turned her journal notating the most common regrets of her dying patients into a book- The Top Five Regrets of The Dying. What I found ‘interesting’ in reading the following excerpt is that I saw this minutes after being informed that the last of my living uncles had passed away yesterday evening at the ripe age of 98.

He was my mother’s oldest brother and the final survivor of that generation. It’s no secret that siblings often quibble about each other’s ‘ways of being'(although being an only child I fortunately escaped this one!). My mother and her siblings were no exception and so this excerpt of Bronnie’s gave me pause; I realized that as I read the following five common regrets, they make a wonderful case for evolutionary astrology as a valuable tool for actively facilitating our Soul’s growth while we have the time.

Through the evolutionary astrological lens, everyone’s birth chart reveals where and how we have opportunity to make course corrections in this life from past Karma that haunts us at unconscious levels within our being. We have time; in doing so, it’s possible to bypass some or perhaps all of the regrets Bronnie outlines from her experiences with the dying. If you’re interested to know more about Evolutionary Astrology and its benefits, please checkout my website. Steven Forrest, one of the most globally recognized evolutionary astrologers and my teacher, has excellent information on his site as well. In the meantime, I’m certain you’ll find that Bronnie’s insights sound intimately familiar and that interestingly, they resonate with the core of Evolutionary Astrology!

“One thing on regret before we get to the list. It’s important to remember that whatever stage we are at in life, there is no need for regret. The process of regret is one that provides nothing but suffering for ourselves as we begin to allow the past to dictate how we should feel now. Instead, we can use the past as a reference point to understand what adjustments we would like to make moving forward. The adjustments do not have to come out of pain, sorrow, regret or judgment, but simply a choice to do things in a different way. We are learning all the time, we can very quickly slow that learning process down by getting stuck in the idea of regret. When it comes to making changes, be at peace with the past and remember that each moment is a new choice.”

1. I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.

“This was the most common regret of all. When people realise that their life is almost over and look back clearly on it, it is easy to see how many dreams have gone unfulfilled. Most people had not honoured even a half of their dreams and had to die knowing that it was due to choices they had made, or not made. Health brings a freedom very few realise, until they no longer have it.”

2. I wish I hadn’t worked so hard.

“This came from every male patient that I nursed. They missed their children’s youth and their partner’s companionship. Women also spoke of this regret, but as most were from an older generation, many of the female patients had not been breadwinners. All of the men I nursed deeply regretted spending so much of their lives on the treadmill of a work existence.”

3. I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings.

“Many people suppressed their feelings in order to keep peace with others. As a result, they settled for a mediocre existence and never became who they were truly capable of becoming. Many developed illnesses relating to the bitterness and resentment they carried as a result.”

4. I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.

“Often they would not truly realise the full benefits of old friends until their dying weeks and it was not always possible to track them down. Many had become so caught up in their own lives that they had let golden friendships slip by over the years. There were many deep regrets about not giving friendships the time and effort that they deserved. Everyone misses their friends when they are dying.”

5. I wish that I had let myself be happier.

”This is a surprisingly common one. Many did not realise until the end that happiness is a choice. They had stayed stuck in old patterns and habits. The so-called ‘comfort’ of familiarity overflowed into their emotions, as well as their physical lives. Fear of change had them pretending to others, and to their selves, that they were content, when deep within, they longed to laugh properly and have silliness in their life again.”